Turkish opposition leader loses electricity as he protests high prices
Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu’s one-family resistance to protest exorbitant electricity price hikes has garnered large support from the public.
Energy prices have been rising at a shocking rate in Turkey. In the first days of 2022, price hikes reached some 127%. Households and businesses tried to protest in frustration. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and officials of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have made repeated promises for price adjustment since February.
On Feb. 9, the chair of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu, announced that he would not pay his electricity bills until the promised readjustment comes.
According to Turkish journalist Seyit Tosun, Kilicdaroglu’s decision has been aiming to help hundreds of thousands whose electricity was cut off due to unpaid bills.
“The goal is to stand in solidarity with 70 million people in Turkey facing poverty as they can no longer afford basic goods. The goal is to create a collective difference,” Tosun told Al-Monitor.
